The Legend of Arild Ugerup

Description

Legend of Arild Ugerup is a tone poem for wind dectet, portraying the Swedish story from “The Master of Ugerup” by Herman Hofberg (1823-1883). The legend is sometimes told to children at schools, as a fun way to demonstrate the skill of problem solving in a difficult situation. The story: Arild was from a noble Danish family that had lived in Sweden. When Denmark and Sweden declared war on each other, Arild was captured in battle and imprisoned by King Erik of Sweden. Thale Thott had promised to marry Arild after the war. However, her father now insisted she marry another as he was unlikely to be freed. Thale writes to Arild to explain that she cannot marry him. Arild is left distraught in prison. However, he asks the King for temporary freedom to marry Thale, plant a crop and stay long enough to harvest it. The King agrees and Arild marries Thale. When the harvest season is over, the King’s messenger visits him and requests his return. Arild explains that he couldn’t harvest his crop as it wasn’t ready, and there was no harvest. Alrild had planted pine trees! When the King heard Alrild’s clever plan and trickery to ensure he is with Thale, he was so impressed that he granted Arild his freedom. The music: Andante con brio instruction portrays the vibrant and confident nature of Arild’s character and the jaunty opening creates a feeling of fun. The music is light-hearted overall, with staccato passages, acciaccaturas and rhythms creating an entertaining ‘quirky’ feeling, as well as more softer delicate moments to highlight the love element of the story. Nevertheless, Arild faced battle, imprisonment and difficult times, which are also reflected in the score. However, the main focus is the confidence and energy of Arild and the romance with Thale. The music features a triumphant conclusion.